What are people these days without the Internet? Even some remote mountain huts now receive a mobile phone signal. But this is not the only place where receivers for mobile Internet are on the rise. Companies are increasingly marketing them as a replacement for landline connections. Special routers are then used that establish the connection to the Internet via radio – just like a smartphone. They also set up a WiFi network so that multiple users or devices can use the Internet connection at the same time.
What may be a good idea for the mountain hut is often not so for the home, at least not financially. Because such connections are not cheap if you use them like a landline connection – i.e. without a data limit. This was determined by the comparison portal Verivox. According to his calculations, a mobile connection with good performance data for the home costs around twice as much as a landline connection, i.e. almost 40 instead of 20 euros if you use the tariffs of the cheapest providers.
Check first, then order
Quite apart from the higher monthly price, there are a few points to consider. The most important thing: Before you agree to such a contract, you should check how good the cell phone reception actually is in your apartment. This always depends very much on the local conditions and sometimes even on the weather: a rain-soaked, leafy tree in front of the apartment can weaken the signal significantly; In general, the reception quality depends on where the nearest transmission tower is.
How good the performance is also depends on how many users are in a cell phone cell at the same time. Because the bandwidths that the providers promise are shared by the users who are there. However, many landline providers do not always keep their promises.
Mobile internet connections are therefore most suitable for campsites or mountain huts; some receiving devices can also be operated using batteries. They are also useful for a limited period of time if there is no wired connection yet for the new apartment. Some providers even supply cellular routers until the line stops. Of course, you can also use your smartphone and even enable WiFi via it. But that drains the battery and is more of an emergency solution for the home.